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Post by vbcoltrane on Sept 21, 2023 10:02:03 GMT -5
I doubt they'd fire Tamas after this season. Last year he was .500, and even if Illinois has a really bad season this year, he's only two years removed from a Sweet 16. Hasn't had an upper tier B1G finish in a while, but 7th for the past few years is mid-pack. The Rosens at Michigan were around forever and usually mid pack. Mid pack B1G isn't terrible and usually means a tourney appearance ("usually") and even if Tamas misses two tourneys in a row - which he most likely will, I'd think he still gets another year. I'm not saying he's not trending in the wrong direction, and obviously the AD can see that. But, again, I see him getting at least one more year.
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Post by dizzydean on Sept 21, 2023 10:37:56 GMT -5
I'd think Jen would be a boost to recruiting simply because she seems like a great person, great personality, and played on the national team. I have no idea if she can identify the right players, etc., but I would think she could be of help in that position.
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Post by vball778 on Sept 21, 2023 11:42:53 GMT -5
I agree in that the most likely scenario is that Whitman just lets the time run out with Tamas. It’s less stress on his part to have someone that is just doing his best and not rocking the boat in the seat than it is to replace him at this point, pay out his contract, and fork up cash for some new coach who will have the same grievances eventually.
Ideally he keeps Tamas and addresses the issues so Tamas can do his job better. I want to believe it isn’t a coaching issue because he and the crew seem like great people to play for. I just wonder if that is not what the top recruits in this generation cares about anymore when it comes to playing elite college volleyball.
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Post by oldmanvb on Sept 21, 2023 11:53:27 GMT -5
It seems to me an adjustment in the coaching staff is called for at the very least. Most of the issues, at least from my perspective, relate to passing and defense. While the passing has marginally improved getting a new back row coach is called for and possibly even urgent. Sharping needs to find another position somewhere else and a serious investment has to be made in the back row. I assume the passing/defense coach is responsible for identifying, recruiting and developing DSs, and to this point the results have been far below what is needed to play at the B1G level. Plus, replacing one assistant while Tamas is given the opportunity to right the ship is a much more surgical solution as opposed to canning the entire staff. Find a very successful D3 or D2 defense oriented head coach and offer him or her Sharping’s job.
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Post by vball778 on Sept 21, 2023 12:00:29 GMT -5
The defense is truly atrocious. It’s actually appalling and almost offensive. We made free balls yesterday look tough. Are we confident that Sharping is their defense coach?
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Post by gurnee50 on Sept 21, 2023 12:03:32 GMT -5
If it's a facilities thing, it should be a quick fix. Perhaps the now upended plans to build a downtown hockey rink is the reason that the bowels of Huff haven't been upgraded. Should be cheaper to fix up the locker rooms and meeting rooms than pay Chris and the staff a whole lotta severance. Hope Chris and Josh work out the situation at Huff and he and Jen lead the team to a quick and lasting resurgence. I will say that when my daughter played field hockey at Northwestern a few years ago, the team's locker room was a couple blocks away from the field at Patton Gym. And it was very, very old. But my daughter didn't care. And the visiting team had to use the student rec center across the street from the field to change before and after the game (they built a locker room at the field two years ago). It really didn't impact the team's record - Tracy Fuchs is a phenomenal coach, the best in the business, IMO.
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Post by Riviera Minestrone on Sept 21, 2023 12:10:04 GMT -5
I just hope Whitman does a better job of replacing Tamas than the hiring of Groce to replace Weber. No dog in this fight, but I have a genuinely sincere question. 2-3 years back, I asked this fanbase why they kept bashing Kevin Hambly. A number of UI VT'ers...led by NotPriddy...continued to wax poetically about Tamas: continually evading my point that KH led you to greater heights than anyone. And now?
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Post by northwoods on Sept 21, 2023 12:11:17 GMT -5
I agree in that the most likely scenario is that Whitman just lets the time run out with Tamas. It’s less stress on his part to have someone that is just doing his best and not rocking the boat in the seat than it is to replace him at this point, pay out his contract, and fork up cash for some new coach who will have the same grievances eventually. Ideally he keeps Tamas and addresses the issues so Tamas can do his job better. I want to believe it isn’t a coaching issue because he and the crew seem like great people to play for. I just wonder if that is not what the top recruits in this generation cares about anymore when it comes to playing elite college volleyball. The smart thing for Whitman would be to not extend Tamas further, but start the process on new facilities (a site, plans & renderings). Identify assistants that are capable of taking over as head coach on an interim basis in case the melt-down accelerates. Then let things play out. He is still in the middle of fixing football, so the volleyball team is not a priority for him. You can eat 2 years of a Tamas contract if you bump up an assistant for a season and a half. Then look for a seasoned coach who will require the new facilities & more support. Top recruits want to join a program that can win a national championship and propel them to spot on the national team. That is why Texas, Nebraska and Stanford have always landed so many of them. Illinois used to be able to sell hope, pointing to MBH & Poulter’s experience but that window is pretty much closed now.
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Post by eazy on Sept 21, 2023 12:17:15 GMT -5
Top recruits want to join a program that can win a national championship and propel them to spot on the national team. That is why Texas, Nebraska and Stanford have always landed so many of them. Illinois used to be able to sell hope, pointing to MBH & Poulter’s experience but that window is pretty much closed now. Tell that to Jordan Thompson?
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Post by basil on Sept 21, 2023 12:29:52 GMT -5
Top recruits want to join a program that can win a national championship and propel them to spot on the national team. That is why Texas, Nebraska and Stanford have always landed so many of them. Illinois used to be able to sell hope, pointing to MBH & Poulter’s experience but that window is pretty much closed now. Tell that to Jordan Thompson? was Thompson a top recruit? I thought she was under the radar
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Post by northwoods on Sept 21, 2023 12:36:03 GMT -5
Top recruits want to join a program that can win a national championship and propel them to spot on the national team. That is why Texas, Nebraska and Stanford have always landed so many of them. Illinois used to be able to sell hope, pointing to MBH & Poulter’s experience but that window is pretty much closed now. Tell that to Jordan Thompson? JT was not highly recruited and then blew out her elbow requiring Tommy John surgery. She is the type of needle Illinois is going to need to pull out of a haystack at this point.
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Post by northwoods on Sept 21, 2023 12:42:14 GMT -5
The smart thing for Whitman would be to not extend Tamas further, but start the process on new facilities (a site, plans & renderings). Identify assistants that are capable of taking over as head coach on an interim basis in case the melt-down accelerates. Then let things play out. He is still in the middle of fixing football, so the volleyball team is not a priority for him. You can eat 2 years of a Tamas contract if you bump up an assistant for a season and a half. Then look for a seasoned coach who will require the new facilities & more support. Top recruits want to join a program that can win a national championship and propel them to spot on the national team. That is why Texas, Nebraska and Stanford have always landed so many of them. Illinois used to be able to sell hope, pointing to MBH & Poulter’s experience but that window is pretty much closed now. Athletic Directors don't hire assistant coaches. Didn’t say hire…. Said identify. Kirsta may be up to the task, Eli not so much. There were a number of reasons Jen Tamas was hired to take the paid assistant job, and the cynic in me thinks one of them was to avoid hiring his potential replacement.
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Post by ilalum92 on Sept 21, 2023 13:47:51 GMT -5
Agree with almost everything that was said. Tamas said is takes about 5 years before the program is really his - well it is now and it’s in the toilet. Understandably we lost Bruna, Ellie, Maddie $ Taylor. But you need to able bodied who can still compete at the Big 10 level. Stop with the projects. I see healthy stud players going to smaller schools with less volleyball pedigree & mediocre facilities. Something has to change.
Also Tamas saying they look great in practice but get nervous in matches. Welcome to D 1 athletics. It’s the coaches job to get them prepped mentally to play. I’d love to see a lot more fire from the coaches. It’s ok to raise your voice and show players they need to step it up. All this kumbaya doesn’t win matches. Tamas saying he recruits personality over talent is absurd. I’d rather have a few stud players with an attitude and win matches than a love fest and losing record.
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Post by Del Bocavista on Sept 21, 2023 14:15:01 GMT -5
On a happier note, got my Illinois Alumni magazine and saw Mike Hebert elected to the Hall of Fame, which seems both well deserved and overdue. I started at Illinois about the same time as Dr. Mike, and got to know him a little bit. Great guy and volleyball mind.
Here at Madison, the team went through a 5 year non-tournament stretch before Sheffield was hired. Talent was a problem at first, but Coach Waite had largely addressed the talent issue. The team had just grown accustomed to losing and giving a lackluster effort. I remember the first meeting Sheffield had with boosters where he said something like "We're not going to win every match, we may not even win a majority of our matches, but opponents are going to have to earn every one of their 25 points a set, and they are not going to like playing us." I see a lot of similarities. The Illinois team last night didn't seem to have much energy or fight. I think Tamas has to immediately address this and get some energy back on the Illini side. I think the talent is better than is being shown right now. And of course, they need to come up with a 10 or 20 year plan for facilities and where they want volleyball to go, and to start down that path. It would be much easier to recruit to the renaissance of Illini volleyball with an active plan in place, rather than to "something may change in the future."
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Post by foss on Sept 21, 2023 15:01:35 GMT -5
. . . the talent is better than is being shown right now. . That is 100% on coaching and on Tamas and his staff. I've been following Illini v-ball since late 80's Mike Hebert and was more excited to watch the team as a student in almost all of the 90's when we were a lot smaller and called ourselves the "Spikers" as football was not as fun to watch. That is what I miss, the fun in watching the team and seeing them many times overachieve under Hardin.
Kevin Hambly brought in the talent, but just couldn't get us over the edge. I'll reiterate that the Huff stuff is a weak argument. I remember under Hambly, how the players (ours and visiting) said the Huff environment was a HUGE advantage the Illini had. In my almost 40 years sitting in Huff, I've seen so many improvements (the new LED colored lights were a bad move IMHO) so there are improvements beyond just the new scoreboard.
Whitman is at the v-ball games so he knows what is going on, unfortunately he seems to be the kind of person that likes to ignore the negative and just try to focus the positive and hoping the negative will just works itself out (ignorance is bliss). So I don't see him making any moves until it gets really bad (look at Lovie, Groce, and Fahey).
I think his focus right now is on football and how they are falling well below expectations and hoping basketball (men and women) doesn't fall in the pile of challenges he is going to have to address eventually as problems rarely just fix themselves.
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